Problem gambler sues Tabcorp for ‘enticing’ her into $900,000 debt

A problem gambler claims she asked Tabcorp not offer her enticements to gamble. It knew she was losing badly, but the inducements – from $1000 bet matches to tickets to the tennis – kept coming. Now she’s lost $900k, and she’s suing.

A woman suing Tabcorp has been left with crippling debts because of her gambling addiction.

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Australia’s largest betting agency, Tabcorp, is facing a landmark lawsuit from a problem gambler who asked she not be sent direct marketing material only to be targeted with enticements that left her more than $900,000 in debt.

Internal call logs reveal Tabcorp was aware the woman had lost $135,000 in the space of a ­single month as her betting increased dramatically but in a ­“responsible gambling call” gave her a $2000 inducement to place more bets.

The woman was then bombarded with more offers, including another $2000 to match any bet, “bonus bets” worth $1000 and invitations to the Australian Open quarterfinals.

Tabcorp was last year hit with a $4.6m fine for repeatedly breaching its betting licence and responsible gambling code in dealing with the woman, but she has been left with crippling debts as a result of her gambling addiction.

The Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission found Tabcorp was aware its customer was “displaying observable signs of distress … indicating a problem with their gambling” and had failed to support her or consider whether she could afford the heavy losses.

Earlier this year, the wagering giant was hit with a further $4m fine in a separate case after sending its VIP customers thousands of personalised text and Whats­App messages offering incentives such as bonus bets, deposit matching, rebates and offers of tickets to sporting events, without giving people a way to unsubscribe.

The new civil action against Tabcorp could set a precedent that would rattle Australia’s $25bn-a-year gambling industry.

Punters have a bet on Melbourne Cup Day at Randwick Racecourse in Sydney.

A 2013 High Court case failed largely because the plaintiff was a wealthy, sophisticated gambler who had not been induced to bet, and because the case was brought before the introduction of the Australian Consumer Law.

In a statement of claim expected to be filed in the Victoria ­Supreme Court this week, the woman’s lawyers allege that Tabcorp knew or ought to have known the woman was a problem gambler and that gambling would have “a significant and deleter­ious impact” on her mental health and wellbeing, her marriage and family relationships and on her ­finances.

“It is both unconscionable at common law and in contravention of the Australian Consumer Law for the defendant to retain the benefit of bets placed by the plaintiff,” a statement of claim seen by The Australian states.

“It’s like an opium den pushing their drug on to an addict, and the consequences to her were almost as severe, in that it caused her life to unravel,” said her lawyer, Stewart Levitt, of Levitt Robinson Solicitors. “Our client wasn’t on the same playing field, she wasn’t making a conscious and wilful decision – she was basically being ­seduced by their taking advantage of her vulnerability.”

In August 2020, the woman renewed a betting account with Tabcorp but specifically opted out of receiving marketing or any messages.

In 2022, she lost $135,000 in the space of a single month, with the company’s internal records noting: “Significant increase in losses and turnover over last 3 months. 12 (month) losses $160k, 1 (month) losses 135K” … Recommend call if none recently.”

In October 2022, a Tabcorp employee phoned her to “provide support” as required by the Code of Conduct but instead offered her a $2000 “deposit match” inducement and “a couple of extra ­bonuses to play with”.

On at least five other occasions the woman was given further inducements, including another $2000 to match any bet, “bonus bets” worth $1000 and invitations to the Australian Open quarter­finals.

The lawsuit claims that by ­facilitating transactions through an app on the woman’s phone and removing any personal assessment, Tabcorp reduced its ­capacity to judge whether she was a problem gambler.

Over a 13-month period, the woman placed bets of about $2m, losing at least $500,000 and ­borrowing extensively to finance her bets.

She is now at least $900,000 in debt.

“Really this organisation, they’re very brutal, and just some sort of the games that they play,” the woman told The Australian.

“This VIP service they provide – the guy that would often ring me would ask for certain amounts to be put in, and in return you get so many bonus bets or they offer to take you to the footy or drinks at the races.

“He would talk about what he was going to bet on, so there was a very ruthless side to them, pretending to be your friend.”

She is now self-excluded for life from gambling under the ­national BetStop register but is struggling under the mountain of debt.

“There are so many things my kids missed out on, all the things I just couldn’t afford to do for them because the addiction had taken over so much,” the woman told The Australian.

Her family was not aware of the extent of her gambling or her losses, she said.

The woman has been diagnosed with a DSM-Generalised Anxiety Disorder and suffers depression and suicide ideation.

She is still married “at the moment” but says it’s “a grey area”.

“That’s the hardest thing, you’re living a secret life and the pressures of that took its toll towards the end,” she said.

“The only reason it stopped was there was no money left.”